The Love of Remus and Nymphadora
by Nefertari Membarak
Summary: [Deathly Hollows Spoilers] The following is a story that depicts the relationship between Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks during the 7th book, the portions that were not told. My way of coping with their fate. Critique welcome!
1. Chapter 1

Tonks closed the door behind her after they had both entered the room. She held onto its knob for more than a few seconds after the door had found its comfortable space under its threshold, grinning and resting her head for a moment on the wood. She let go, and turned around to face him.

Lupin stood only a few feet away, with a content look on his face, as though a smile didn't matter when it came to expressing his emotions. She walked briskly over and wrapped her arms tightly around him, pressing her face to his chest. He rested his arms around her but in a slackened manner as though his energy had been drained by the evening's event.

Still holding on to him, she looked up into his face and smiled. "Let it be known that we defied these difficult times by making today a happy day."

"A happy day, indeed," he replied, running his fingers through her vivid pink hair. He did this for a few moments until he let go, as though he all of a sudden felt the need to hesitate when it came to being close to her.

She relaxed her grip around him, still holding on, and continued to look up into his face trying to read the unreadable. "Do you still think that it matters?" She said to him pointedly, "Because it doesn't."

"It matters," he said, finally giving a smile. "But not so much to you, this I know."

He bent down and kissed her gently on the forehead. She reached up to his face, running a finger along a visible scar that lined his cheek. "It was perfect," she said, "especially considering the circumstances. If only others could have been there, like Harry."

"Yes," he said. "But we must adapt these days."

She let go of him, completely this time, and walked over to the window, drawing its curtains shut. Lupin walked behind her, and by the squeak of several springs, she knew he'd taken a seat on the bed. She turned around, and took the seat next to him.

Laying her head gently on his shoulder, she relaxed in his embrace as he put his arm around her once more. They sat there for several moments, and she listened to his steady breathing.

"You must forgive me," Lupin said abruptly, causing Tonks to jerk. "But I never expected this."

She lifted her head and placed her chin on his shoulder, and with her lips so close to his ear it looked as though she were about to whisper a secret. "But you mustn't think of this like that," she said, watching the shadows of his face as he looked down at the floor. "You can't hesitate around me anymore."

She laughed, "I'm your wife now," she said. "And I order you to be happy!"

She sat up a bit and kissed his cheek, holding on to his skin with her lips, she could feel his face widen as he smiled.

He turned to face her and grabbed her lips with his. They kissed each other gently and then passionately, and she finally felt as though he had abandoned all fear that he may have had as they sat on the bed, embracing each other as husband and wife.


	2. Chapter 2

Lupin woke part in due to the sun peaking through the decorative cut outs of the curtain, but he knew the true reason had been because of a dream he'd been fearing for quite some time.

_Through crowded streets he'd been walking hand in hand with his new bride. He had not known where he was, his only focus was the smile that remained vibrant across Tonks' face. He would turn away and look into the crowd, but then he'd turn back to see her smile still upon him._

_Then, it happened. He felt it grace to the very edges of his shaggy hair, and turned around to confirm what it was. Lying on the ground behind him lay a brown shoe, ragged and old. He turned back to the street in front of him and saw a faceless man with is hand raised, a shoe missing from his foot._

_Lupin stared in confusion, wondering what he'd done to deserve such an act of dislike. Then he heard what he knew must be coming._

"_Wolf!" An old woman shouted from the crowd of people that lined the streets. The people seemed to part, as though making way for his walk of doom, for now he could look clearly down the street and saw no end in sight._

_He looked back at Tonks, aware that her hand was still in his grasp. There was a look of fear in her eyes as he cast his gaze upon her. She began to tug away from him, and begging that he let her hand go, all of this in silence._

_But he didn't want to. He held on to her hand tightly, fearing that he might loose her if she continued to fight against him. The crowd behind her began to assist her plea, and they pulled her arm away from his, he felt the delicate fingers slip through._

_His hand came back to him with a force, and graced the side of his face. As he'd felt it, his eyes closed in shame. Lifting both his hands up to his cheeks, he felt rough patches of hair forming on his face, growing to consume it whole._

_The people began to jeer and scream, some bending close to yell into his ear. All names, "Wolf!" "Beast!" "Freak!" He peered through them, looking for her, but there she was no longer._

He lay in bed, contemplating this dream, fearing that this was the first of many and that its core could be true. It had only barely been a day since the wedding, and the doubt rose inside him like a separate beast.

He felt at his finger tips the smooth ends of delicate hair, far unlike his shagginess. Tonks was peacefully asleep, her breathing soft and steady, without any hint of alarm or knowledge of the war that had begun. His heart was in pain over his resurged fear.

Placing his arms gently around her, he cradled her closer to his chest and did his best not to cause her to stir. His heart pounded fast as he recollected the past 24 hours of his life, wondering if he'd made a mistake. He'd given her his heart, but wondered if it was whole enough for her.

Without warning she suddenly pulled herself away from him and propped herself up, using his chest as her support. "I did not think you were awake," he said.

"One cannot rest assuredly when there is a war," she said, comforting him with a smile following such realistic words.

He pulled the covers further up in an attempt to cover his bare chest, as he felt suddenly exposed and ashamed. But this attempt was feeble, as Tonks didn't understand his motive behind this movement and pulled them away, covering his bare skin with hers as she lay upon him.

His breathing no doubt deepened and he was sure she was aware of it. He could feel the roughness of his scars pressed against her smooth skin and felt ashamed. But she gave the impression that she didn't care, although he wondered if she truly did as he thought back to the dream and the way she had retreated from him.

"I wonder what life will be like at the end of all of this," she said, her voice echoing against his neck. "I can't imagine living in a peaceful and carefree world, where battles are scarce and love abundant."

"But that is what we fight for," he said in return, with a deep sigh. "Is it not?"

"Of course it is, but I still wonder how peaceful it could ever become. But don't get me wrong, I would like to raise our children in a world where the main worry is not you-know-who."

His heart jumped at the thought. They had discussed the topic briefly before but never had he shared his opinion on the idea. What would happen if they'd had children? The pain of the thought that they would be like him caused his stomach to turn. It couldn't be so.

He lost train of thought once he felt her lips upon his cheek. She reached up and kissed him without warning. He closed his eyes tightly and soaked up this wonderful feeling.


	3. Chapter 3

_I fixed the grammar and spelling mistakes in the previous chapters, I apologize for that._

The order had collected themselves at the Burrow, thanks to the welcoming hospitality of the Weasley family, despite the danger the future operation may cause. And although Lupin knew how merry and happy the family was in different times, a serious mood had took hold of every member and the others that had come to assist Harry Potter on this trying evening.

Tonks was busy conversing with Mad-Eye Moody, who had been one of only a few that was able to attend the wedding. Her face was stern and focused as she listened to whatever words Mad-Eye was telling her. Lupin became temporarily distracted from his own conversation with Kingsley and Mr. Weasley as he watched her face.

"I do hope this all goes smoothly," said Arthur, and Lupin pulled himself back into the conversation. "Considering the sudden change in plans, that is."

"It will,' said Lupin, placing a hand on Arthur's shoulder as a sign of reassurance. "We must keep our heads on our shoulders for this one."

"Because it would be rather bad if they fell off, wouldn't it?" said Fred Weasley as he walked between the group of them to join his brother on the other side of the room, who'd been laughing with Ron and Hermione. This prompted a smack on the head from his father, and a humble bit of laughter from the three men.

There was a loud thud, and Lupin turned to see a mantelpiece clock slightly bounce and then rest on the floor. Tonks bent down to pick it up quickly, with Molly at her side rushing to do the same.

"I'm so sorry Molly," his wife said in hurriedness. "I'm hoping that my clumsiness will go away as I get older." She laughed.

"Oh, don't be silly dear," Molly said, restoring the clock to its proper place. She put an arm around Tonks and gave her squeeze, both of the women smiled at each other, as though they were silently exchanging thoughts private to themselves.

"Right then," said Lupin, taking the lead in order to distract himself. "I expect we'll hear from  
Hestia and Dedalus at any moment. We all know our partners?"

"Just keep your paws to yourself mate," said George, coming up behind Lupin to pat him on the back.

"I intend to," Lupin replied.

"Be well aware of your senses," said Mad-Eye, taking the lead himself. "If anything is to go wrong then do your best to stick with the plan without giving anything much further away."

A patrounus in the form of an eagle flew through the window and circled the room for a few moments, delivering its message. "Our job at number four, Privet Drive is complete."

The eagle disappeared, and Mad-Eye was the first to move. "All right, let's get this started."


	4. Chapter 4

Tonks had returned to her parent's house without Remus after he'd left the Burrow to search for Mad-Eye's body. Her parents had been waiting for her in the first room near the door. At the sound of her footsteps they ran to greet her, her mother taking her into a giant embrace.

"After hearing what had happened from Harry Potter," her mother began, pulling slowly away from her daughter, but not letting go. "We did not know what to think. We only feared-"

"But no worries now," said her father, coming to hug her as well. "We have you hear safely."

"Mad-Eye is dead," she said to them, the tears beginning to swell up all over again, having allowed the words to leave her lips. Her mother put her hand to her own mouth at the news, and her father simply stared.

"Unimaginable," he said. "No…not him."

"Yes," said Tonks. "Bill Weasley witnessed it. Remus has gone with him to recover h-his body."

"How could he have let you travel back to the house by yourself after all of this?" Her mother said, lowering her hand from her mouth.

"Mother," said Tonks, shocked that such a topic could rise after she'd brought this terrible news.

"No, it is not right Dora," she said, now turning away from her daughter. "He should have been with you."

"I will not have this discussion," Tonks said, moving further into the house. "Not now."

"I agree, now is not the time," said her father, who had followed her to the sitting room. "After what has happened today, surely it can wait till tomorrow at least."

Tonks took a seat in the sitting room, with the intention to stay there until Lupin had returned. She watched her mother as she entered the kitchen, gathering cups and pots with her wand, fixing tea for them.

The tray floated into the center of the room and found its resting place on the center table between the chairs. Tonks took an empty cup into her hand, hesitating to fill it just yet, because she was more concentrated on the fact that her mother's eyes were watching her every move.

"You are unhappy," her mother said suddenly.

"I am not unhappy!" Tonks said sternly, holding the tea cup tightly in her hands in an attempt to channel her anger through its smooth paint. This had not been the first time this topic had surfaced. "If anything I am worried."

"Worried that you've made a mistake?" her mother said, as if she knew the answer would be yes.

"Not at all!" Tonks now stood. "Why can you not see the love that I hold for him, the love that we hold for each other?"

"My dear," her mother said, still seated and looking up into her daughters face. Tonks' hair had now turned a fiery shade of red. "It is not your love that I question, it is his."

"How dare-"

"No, you listen to me now," her mother cut her off. "If I were one of his kind I would say yes if a beautiful, young human being said they wanted to spend the rest of their life with me."

"His kind?" Tonks said, her grasp on the tea cup had tightened more until it could no further. "He has a heart, mother. He has eyes, lips, hands, feet, feelings, and everything a human being does. Simply because he is a werewolf does not mean he is incapable of love. You misjudge him!"

There was a creak at the door as it opened, and Tonks ran out of the room and up to Lupin as he entered the house, wrapping her arms around him. Tears had formed in her eyes during her anger and were now spilling down her face. He lifted a finger and brushed them away, causing her to smile. "We couldn't find him," he said. "We searched as much as we could, but couldn't do any further."

"This is horrible," she said, letting her arms fall to her side, aware that the tea cup was still in her hand. "Of all people-"

"I know," he said, and he put a hand upon her shoulder. She had never been so grateful for that comforting touch.

Her mother and father had entered the hallway to the entrance, and now Tonks was aware again that they had only moments ago been arguing over the status of their relationship. Her mothers face was flat, with no emotion visible.

"Thank you for helping tonight," said Lupin, looking at the both of them.

"Whatever we can do to assist, of course," her father replied.

"I believe it has been a long night," he mother spoke, as she moved to turn down the hallway again. "We should all sleep in hope that tomorrow will be a bit better." She turned fully and walked away, disappearing into one of the doors down the hall. Tonks' father had followed and done the same, after giving each of them a smile. Both of them were now standing at the front door in the silent house.

"It should have gone perfectly," said Tonks, taking Lupin's hand and leading him into the sitting room. "But it went so wrong."

"Not completely wrong," said Lupin. "We completed the mission and Harry is at the Burrow. But now Mad-Eye is no longer with us, and we have become aware that there was a leak."

They sat down and Tonks began to pour some tea into the cup she'd been holding onto. She handed it to Lupin, and watched as he drank it slowly.

"If I yelled at you earlier I am sorry," Lupin spoke after a few moments of silence. "It was only because I hadn't a clue as to what had happened to you."

"It's alright," she replied to him. Tears had begun to drip down her face again. "I've already forgotten, it seems."

Lupin put the tea aside and then wrapped Tonks in his arms, rubbing his hand up and down her back in order to comfort her recent loss. Her head was comfortable resting in the nook of his neck, and she wished to fall asleep now and forget that she had just lost the best teacher she'd ever had. "Let us go to bed."

With a flick of her wand she placed the tea tray back to its proper spot in the kitchen and led Lupin to their room. They didn't bother to remove their dirty clothes and instead opted to go to sleep right away. As they lay down over the soft covers, Tonks wrapped herself around Lupin, letting her head rest upon his chest. She was moments from slumber when she felt his voice vibrate against her ear.

"You know that tomorrow is the full moon," he said, in a whisper.

"Yes," she said, tightening her embrace around him. "I know."


	5. Chapter 5

Lupin woke up earlier then he'd planned, something he'd been doing frequently these days. He didn't make a movement, as usual, and simply lay in bed, with Tonks wrapped around him in sweet slumber. He felt the urge to savor these simple moments, because he feared that his world, along with the world itself, would crumble at any moment.

For some reason the room was hotter then usual, possibly due to the fact that both him and Tonks still wore their clothes from the previous night. The garments began to stick to his skin uncomfortably. He watched a bead of sweat form on Tonks' forehead and then slide down her skin gently over its already sweaty surface.

He moved gently, allowing Tonks to role off of him onto the bed, as he cautiously removed himself from it. She did not wake, but only stirred for a few moments due to the absence of himself, he hoped. Gently he pulled off her traveling cloak with extra caution, in hopes of relieving her from its heat. He took off his as well, and hung both of them on a hook near the door.

Putting his back to the door he leaned upon it and watched Tonks sleep for the next few minutes. She had pushed herself away from the headboard and lay in the center of the bed, curled up like a baby within a womb, and it reminded Lupin of how much younger she was than him.

Her pink hair was pink no longer, but a magnificent shade of dark blue which silver streaks popped in and out of, as though swimming through an ocean. Had it been her dreams that had inspired this new change? He marveled at how beautiful her heart-shaped face was against the white sheets, nearly the same color as her pale skin.

He didn't realize it right away, but soon he felt the tears rolling off his chin and falling on to his shirt at a rapid pace. He'd done his best to be open for her, showing her the love he had. But he knew that he wasn't telling her his frustrations and his fears. He did his best to hide those behind the work for the Order.

He walked over and sat on the bed and began to brush her hair with his fingers. His tired skin was so rough against her smooth tresses. She uncurled from her position and began to stretch, arms and legs reaching their full length. She looked up into his face with a morning smile and he was grateful that his tears had dried. He forced a smile, hoping that she couldn't see through it.

"I won't be able to return tonight, as you know," he said.

"I do," she said, her short lived smile was replaced by a somber face, obviously still saddened by yesterday's loss.

"And I must leave early today," he continued, "for my post." It had been a lie. He simply had to get away from her, fearing that he would loose control I her presence. "We could get someone else in the order to take yours if-"

"Don't say such non-sense!" she said, sitting up to meet his face. "Mad-Eye would curse the skies if I did so. Besides, there is work to do."

She kissed him on the cheek and he stood up from the bed. "Be careful, Remus," she said, as he made for the door. He turned back and gave her a nod before exiting the room.


	6. Chapter 6

Tonks was accustomed to changing her hair for every time she entered the Ministry these days, never carrying the same style, and always doing her best to not draw attention to herself, which meant no bubble-gum pink.

Her long brown hair bounced behind her as she strode along Arthur both headed for the lift. But no matter how much she tried her best to adapt, when two individuals such and Arthur and herself, known for their commitment against the Dark Lord, walk together in a place so influential people will notice.

"Mad-Eye's death doesn't seem to have affected anyone too harshly," said Arthur, as the walked. "I would have thought there would have been much speculation about it, considering there were no details given, for reasons which we and a few others only know."

"'Tis sad," Tonks replied, her focus on her path. "I can only hope that there will be some appreciation for him when all of this ends, when things become clearer."

"That's the spirit, my girl," and Arthur smiled. For his following words, he dropped his voice to a whisper. "How is Remus doing? He acted wonderfully yesterday, but he seems a bit withdrawn. Is everything alright?"

Before Tonks could respond an unknown man to her came up to Arthur and whispered something into his ear, inaudible from her standpoint. "It seems the minister would like to have a word with me."

Tonks gave him a worried look, but he did not address it, "I will see you later then, don't forget about-uhm..the birthday thing tomorrow, just in case we don't cross paths again," said Arthur.

"Of course I won't," Tonks said with a smile, as he walked away with the other wizard.

She continued her walk to the lift, her destination being Mad-Eye's office, from which she wanted to take a few things before they found their way into others hands.

The walk to the office was cloudy, her head was cluttered with thoughts and worries which Arthur had stirred with his question of Lupin's status. Over the past few days she'd done her best to portray happiness and trust that he was happy as well, with his weak smiles and always distant expressions, but she was itching to question him.

She was quite sure she knew his reasons for withdrawal, as Arthur had called it. He was still conscious of the reality of his difference among others, which she had assured him time after time did not matter to her. What could she do to convince him any further?

And then she wondered if she had pressured him too quickly into marriage. Had she not given him time? If this was true it was only because she knew her love for him was so strong, she reassured herself. It was not her intention to trap him. But once he finally agreed to love her in return, shortly following the death of Dumbledore, her heart could not contain her happiness. She had told him that she would not leave his side now that she had his trust. Or at least she thought she had his trust. With his constant looks of despair it was hard to tell anymore. But she could not endure it any longer. It was not the point of a marriage; silence. She would ask him soon, after the full moon. He would be returning that evening from his absence. She would ask him to let all of his fears to fall on her shoulders.

Her heart gave a shudder as she exited the lift, and she was not sure if it were for her evening's plans or the presence of a Death Eater outside the door of her former teacher.


	7. Chapter 7

She'd been exiting the door to the right when he entered the house and he wondered if the slight movement of the curtains he'd seen had been her cause. She threw her arms gently around him and her lips lightly brushed the side of his face. This had been the first time he'd left for the moon, and he wondered if he would receive this sweet welcome every time hereafter.

"I was not sure if you'd eaten," she said, withdrawing. "But I can-"

"It is quite alright," he said, giving her a faint smile. Looking at the time on the clock that hung to their left he said, "I would very much like to sleep, actually."

"Me too," she smiled, and she linked their arms together as she led him down the hallway. As they entered the room he began to remove his traveling cloak and then he hung it in its proper place in the closet. He heard Tonks close the door behind him and he began to remove his vest as well.

He was on its last button when her hands reached around him and slipped the vest off of his back. He closed his eyes tightly at her touch, wishing she hadn't done that.

Her fingers held onto his back as she spun around him, she was wearing the most magnificent smile. Placing both her hands on each side of his face, she brought him lower so that she could kiss him. He winced all the wile as he felt her sweet lips which were so pure and genuine.

Unbuttoning the first button of his shirt, she kissed the spot that had previously been covered. He stood for a moment as she did this and glared at the ceiling. Finally he pulled her hands into his, placed them together and gave them a gentle kiss before pulling away from her.

He'd turned his back to her and walked to the window, parting its white curtains, he glared at the moon which had now taken a lesser shape than whole. He listened, as well, to the silence of her position, no shuffle of feet or movement of clothes.

"I don't understand," she said, breaking silence's icy cold. "Will I ever see you happy, will I ever see you smile truthfully?"

"Dora," he spoke, the sadness filling his heart because he was hearing her unhappiness for the first time.

"Stop hushing up about it, please!" she said, moving closer to him. "Why must you be so reserved about what you feel?"

"But I think you know how fell."

"Then how can I get you to stop feeling it!" She grabbed the front of his shirt in the exact manner she'd done only a few months ago, the night Dumbledore died, when she'd told him once again that she accepted his difference. His heart pounded.

"I will always feel it Nymphadora!" he said, grabbing her hands as she still held onto his shirt. "It is inside of me, and it has been there all of my life. Even during my school years when I had the most loyal of friends who went out of their way to make me feel normal, I still felt it."

"But why can't you feel it and still love me too," she said, the tears formed in her eyes and there was despair in her voice. "What do I have to do to prove that I love you and I want to live with it too! I don't care about the consequences and I don't believe in your protesting because I know it can be done if you just trust me."

She yanked her hands away from him and backed up against the wall, burying her tears into her pale fingers. He watched her for a few moments and then went up to her, doing his best to pry her fingers away from her face. She eventually let go at his insistent touch and he placed his hands around her face and appreciated how it was a perfect fit.

"I care about you, and I love you."

"Then please believe me when I say the same about you," she said, the tears still falling.

He hushed her with his kisses, ones which she returned gratefully. They stood there for quite some time, with the moonlight from the window resting gently upon their skin as Lupin unbuttoned his shirt. And with more kisses he led her to the bed, where they loved and briefly forgot about the world's problems.


	8. Chapter 8

_I apologize if there are any grammatical errors or misspellings, I'm doing my best to go through and re-read and edit them beforehand. But I'm a bit out of tune with English grammar because I've been in Egypt for the past two months studying Arabic, and I only just got back a few days ago. So, lol, I'm feeling a bit language confused. I promise I'll try harder. I'm looking at this as a means of getting back into grammar as well as coping with the two characters fate. –Kaylan_

Lupin's fast pace had not slowed even after having apparated from the Burrow onto their street. Tonks kept the same pace, holding tightly onto his hand. As they reached the front door of her parent's home they stopped, catching their breath before entering.

"Should we try and return later?" asked Tonks. They still held each others hands.

"No," said Lupin, his breath still deep. "It would be safer if we stayed away. I'll send a message to the Weasleys in a few hours; I suppose it'll be ok by then."

"I wonder what he wants," said Tonks, now leaning against the outside wall. "I hope there is no danger. Not today, not on Harry's birthday…oh, I feel so bad for leaving."

"He'll understand," Lupin said.

They now opened the door and entered the house, letting go of each other's hands. Ted, Tonks' father, had been walking down the hallway. He turned at the sound of the door. "Is everything alright? You only just left."

"The minister showed up," said Tonks. "It was better for us to leave."

"Any reason as to why?" her father asked, a quizzical look on his face.

"No," said Lupin. "Hopefully we'll find out tomorrow."

"So everyone ran the coup?"

"No, just us," said Lupin, the three of them made their way for the sitting room.

"Well, why did you leave then," asked Tonks' father, "if everyone else stayed?"

"I'm a registered werewolf," Lupin said, taking a seat, Tonks doing the same beside him. "The minister has the right to arrest me if he wants, nowadays at least. We've become a target of concern."

"I see," said Tonks father. Her mother had now entered the room.

"I overheard," she stated to the both of them. "The both of us already ate, but I'll be glad to prepare something for you if need be."

"I can do it," Tonks said, standing up. Lupin watched her mother's glare follow her daughter into the kitchen, fixated.

"Then I think I shall turn in early," she finally said, her stare relinquishing. She walked out of the room, her husband following her.

Lupin sat for a few moments, contemplating his mother-in-law's reaction to her daughter, an emotion he'd seen growing over the past few days. Cautiously thinking it over he believed it was easy to assume its origin.

Pots and pans clinked in the kitchen as Tonks rustled through cabinets. "Forget this," she said with a great sigh. "_Accio tea pot! _Much easier. I'd always done my best to stay away from the kitchen, honestly." Lupin now joined her. "I was always knocking things over. It wasn't until I was seventeen that I cold successfully bake something. Mostly because of the availability of my wand."

Lupin laughed. "Your cooking is quite fine, as I have seen so far."

"So far," she said, raising an eyebrow as him, as she fumbled through an assortment of spices.

"Dora, I think…we should start looking for another pl-"

"Don't say it," she said, threatening him with a bottle full of tiny green specks. "There is nothing to be worried about."

"What was I going to say, if you know so well?" he challenged her.

"You think living here is a problem with my parents," she said, beginning to cook. "Well, it's not. We don't have the means to move around at the time, especially not during these times."

"You deserve more, D-"

She pressed her lips tightly against his, unwilling to let go, as though she had sealed his words with a kiss. She eventually released him, wearing a smirk on her face she said, "I think that will become a reoccurrence of mine."


	9. Chapter 9

_Disclaimer: In the following chapter I have taken a small portion from _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_, in hopes of allowing the chapter to flow more without cutting the scene and letting it appear choppy. I have noted the section taken and attribute it with a footnote, because by no means do I wish to pass her writing as mine. However, if someone believes there is a mistake in the footnote, please speak up because I will correct it. Thank you for reading ___

"Just in case," said Tonks, as Lupin entered their bedroom and saw a blonde woman rummaging through the closet. She ruffled her hair a bit, and then continued her search. "And Fleur had pleaded for me to change it as well. According to her, it would distract people away from the weddings theme, of course," and she laughed.

"How considerate of you," said Lupin, as he sat on the bed to wait for her.

"I try," she smiled.

"Just keep your wand at a place where it can be ready at a moments notice," he said, lacing his fingers together as he waited, hoping that his reasoning behind the statement would not come true on this night.

He would never have guessed that his wife had a care in the world, even at this point in time, war knocking on the door at every turn. Her smiles had become more frequent, and her kisses as well. And he could not help but notice how deep his own expressions contrasted hers. He wondered what it would take to feel her happiness. Normalcy, he supposed.

"Ready now?" she said, pulling his arm and leading him off the bed. "We don't want to be late."

They apparated to the appropriate spot outside the Burrow and found themselves among a furry of guests, all dressed their best for this elaborate occasion. Lupin tugged at his left sleeve with his hand and wished he'd worn something a bit more _new_, because it would just be one more thing to set him apart. He shook his head slightly, trying to erase the thought from his mind when he knew there were other things to worry about.

Tonks laced their arms together as they began their walk to the entrance. It was not hard to tell Weasley apart from non-Weasley, as he watched families of red heads shuffle past. Although almost all faces beamed and smiled as they chatted amongst themselves, Lupin was aware of the worried looks of some, no doubt due to the events of recent.

"Oh, that must be him!" Tonks whispered excitedly into his ear. He was continually amazed by her cheeriness, and looked ahead to see who she was talking about.

"Wotcher," she said to the boy. "Author told us you were the one with the curly hair. Sorry about last night," her last words were a whisper.¹

"It's fine, I understand," said the Harry in disguise.² Lupin felt Harry's gaze linger on him for more than would have been comfortable for the time being, he did his best to feign a smile. Even as Tonks and he continued on to their seats he felt that Harry's eyes were still upon him.

The ceremony was elaborate and the mood was the happiest it could have been. People beamed at Fleur and Bill as they stood together, moments away from being joined as husband and wife. Fleur's glowing face never stopped smiling and never did she take her eyes away from Bill, whose scars seemed to disappear. The world could have been crumbling around them but all that mattered was that there they stood, hand in hand, their hearts joined for eternity.

Tonks held his hand during the entire ceremony, squeezing it slightly at certain words that were said by the wizard leading the event. It wasn't long ago that they had experienced this same union, although much less grand. He all of a sudden wished he could have given her more than their simple ceremony. The people in attendance were much less than half, possibly a third, of the guests that were seated around them. But he recalled not carrying at the time about who was there. All he cared about was the woman standing in front of him.

Her hair was on fire, and he recalled having never seen a more lively shade of pink in all his life. And while the right corner of her lips turned slightly, forming a humble smile, it was the love in her eyes that he remembered. They bore into his sole and never let go. He couldn't dare to look away, because he feared that she would disappear right in front of him. He wondered if he'd been smiling, because he could honestly not recall. All he remembered were her eyes.

Her white gown was simple, but perfect and beautiful, and he remembered the way he laughed at the pink lace that circled the bottom. Her personal touch no doubt. After the ending words, they were congratulated by their few guests and they spoke and laughed for quite some time, unaware that there could possibly be pain in the world at that moment. She never let go of his hand the entire time.

And as he again felt the gentle weight of her hand in his, he smiled. It was his first genuine smile in a long time, he felt. And timing couldn't have been more perfect, for at the moment she rested her head gently on his shoulder. He closed his eyes and squeezed her hand.

This feeling of bliss lasted for only seconds as the end of the ceremony and the uniting of this new couple finally came. And as they stood upon request the room transformed and people rushed to enjoy themselves on this special night.

_¹The quotes noted here are words written by J.K. Rowling that can be found on p.116 (in the British edition) in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows._

_²This quote is as well taken from the same page as noted above._


	10. Chapter 10

People spun around them as they began to dance to an eruption of song. Tonks held onto his arm as he searched for a table, which was proving to be a difficult task. Nearly all of them had occupants, some full and some half full. He finally settled on a table that occupied an older couple whose faces he'd recalled barely, from the Ministry he assumed.

Lupin pulled out a chair for Tonks who was giggling slightly. "That sure was fast," she said, as Lupin took the chair next to her. "People waste no time for a good time. How are y-"

But her would be question was never to be formed. After one threatened look from the man as he stared at Lupin, he took the arm of the woman and stood up, leaving both of them alone at the table. Tonks made nothing of it, however, quite distracted by the merriment around them. But Lupin couldn't deny that look in the man's eye, one he'd received too many times. A man of the Ministry he had to be, and no relative of the Weasleys he'd hoped. For that look was one which gave the quickest judgment for Lupin. Werewolf.

"That girl is a silly one," Tonks said, pulling him out of his thought cycle.

"Who?"

"Her," and she pointed at a young girl spinning ridiculously, with her hands above her head. Lupin remembered her from a little over a year ago, when Voldemort had attacked the Ministry in hopes of retrieving the prophecy, the night Sirius Black lost his life. "Lovegood, that's her name."

"A rare one, she is," said Tonks.

At that moment another couple joined them at the table, two individuals Lupin had never met before. The man, one of medium height and a bubble-like figure, had a round, full face and features that sunk in, leaving his eyes and mouth in shadow. His wife was in no contrast to him with her rounded face and figure as well, and her bowl like yellow hair that matched her golden dress robes.

After sitting they gave no inclination that there were other people present at the table. Although they seemed reluctant to begin conversation, Tonks wouldn't allow silence to take hold of them.

"Are you part of the family?" she asked them, rather loudly due to the music that was pulsing through the air.

"No," said the man, in a matter of fact tone. He had a very unpleasantness about him, as though he spent his days locked up in a room from morning to evening. "I used to work with Bill at Gringotts."³ He pointed at the woman to his right. "This is my wife Yvonne. My name is Rayford Peters."

"Nice to meet you," Tonks nodded her head, and neither of them made a gesture to shake hands, but nodded back. "I'm Nymphadora Lupin, and this is my h-"

"Remus Lupin, I presume?"

Lupin sat up in his chair and looked at the man, reconsidering if they'd ever met before. "My apologies, but do I know you?"

"No," said the man, in the same tone as before. "But I've come across your face before. As part of my work for Gringotts I over headed security in the past, a job that requires extensive knowledge of which wizards might cause a threat to the bank."

"Are you implying that my husband is a threat to Gringotts?" Tonks had beaten him to his words. "Because he's not."

"Possibly so," said Rayford Peters, the shadows of his face deepened. "But as a registered werewolf he could be a threat to anyone." It was the reference to him in third person, speaking of him as if he were not there, that pained Lupin the most.

"You have nothing to fear from me, Mr. Peters," said Lupin, and he placed a hand on Tonks' hand underneath the table to prevent her from saying anything further. The couple said nothing, nor made any slight movement to acknowledge these last words.

Without warning Tonks stood from her chair and pulled Lupin by the hand as she left the table.

"Inconsiderate!" she said in what seemed like a hiss. "They should learn about a person's character before they judge them as a criminal. I mean…just for being a werewolf!" She pressed her hand tightly into his as they walked, searching for another table one with familiar faces.

"At a time when most werewolves have sided with you-know-who I think it is easy for them to assume anything," said Lupin, trying to justify their claim. However, despite this being true he knew it made no real difference. He was destined to be prejudiced against regardless.

"Pity," said Tonks.

Their search ended in vain as at that moment a silver lynx swam across the floor and uttered a warning that almost need not be heard by the two of them, for seconds later their appeared a hooded figure at their feet with his wand raised.

_³I'm not sure if Bill still worked for Gringotts or if he used to, I believe he used to but I honestly can't recall. Please correct me if I'm wrong._


	11. Chapter 11

"_Protego!" _Both of them had already raised their wands, because they had been prepared for such an event in advance. Two bolts of red light shot at the Death Eater before he could even mutter a word, and he buckled over and became a heap of black cloth on the floor. Soon, darts of red light shot through all corners of the room and more hooded figures arrived while guests vanished into thin air.

"Arthur!" Lupin had shouted, and received the reassuring look and nod he needed from him to know that Harry had gone.

"_Protego!"_ Tonks had shouted again from behind him. Her face was focused, and he saw that she was concentrated on the scene around her. She was now the wonderful Auror she'd been trained to be.

The scene had nearly settled around them, no more hooded figures appeared and no one else left the floor. Remaining were Tonks and himself, the Weasleys, the Delacours, as well as a few other guests but not many. No more spells were being fired, and the room became quiet.

There were a few moments of silence during which a Death Eater raised a wand to Fleur's throat, at which Lupin turned to see another Death Eater raising a wand to his wife's throat.

"Don't!" he placed a hand on her arm, and then raised his own wand to the black hole that was the hooded figure's face. "Drop it and I'll drop mine."

"How about we remain where we are, and then you can answer a few questions," spoke the unknown face, a voice that Lupin did not recognize. This bothered him deeply, the fact that these were unknown Death Eaters, which confirmed that Ministry members had fallen to the growing mass of them and that others were joining.

"What questions would you like to ask?" said Lupin, his other hand was still resting on Tonks' arm and he sensed her agitation, knowing that she must be aggravated with her helpless position.

"Move to the chair," and the Death Eater jerked his head slightly to the left, the shadow of his face pulling away from his chin as it entered the light.

"Not that easily," said Lupin. He heard a voice to his right and out of the corner of his eye saw Bill Weasley in a similar position he was, his wand pointed at the back of the Death Eater's head that held his new bride hostage.

"By the order of the Ministry of Magic," a short wizard stood away from the group, who was the only one to not have his head shrouded in shadow. He pulled out his wand and in the air formed a sheet of paper which he read from. "_Any witch or wizard will adhere to questioning of the Ministry's request_ and the Ministry does request, so if we could all lower our wands I would like to see everyone take a seat."

The Death Eater in front of Lupin let his wand fall away from Tonks' throat and Lupin lowered his wand as well. Once each wand was at the owner's side, Lupin pulled Tonks closer to him, and she moved slowly, holding her ground for a minute before following him to a chair a few feet away.

Soon enough every individual in the room, apart from the short wizard with his sheet of paper floating in front of him, had taken a seat which had led to an awkward picture of wedding guests and dark cloaked figures sitting amongst an elaborately decorated room of white and gold.

Mr. Weasley and Mrs. Weasley sat a chair apart from each other with their daughter Ginny sitting between them, the Twins sat to their right next to their brother Charlie. The Delacours sat closely next to each other, their chairs only inches apart, and next to them sat Bill and Fleur who were holding hands.

"Now," said the short wizard. "What was the event being held here this evening?"

"My v'edding, s'you thoughtless man!" Fleur had gotten to her feet, and Bill did his best to pull her down to her chair, and she eventually gave into his plea.

"I see," said the wizard, and ignoring Fleur's anger he continued to peer at the sheet of paper floating in front of him.

Lupin glanced over at Tonks, whose hair had faded from its blonde color to a dark and deep red. She'd been watching the surroundings intently, her face firm and set, unlike how it had been only minutes ago, smiling and happy.

"And the guests to this event," the wizard spoke again. "Do we know their names?"

"Well, yes," Mrs. Weasley spoke up gently, and grabbed hold of Ginny's shoulder as though she were about to float away. "It is around the house somewhere, I'm sure, but they were mostly family, some friends of the family."

"I see," the wizard said. He was taking no notes and didn't look at anyone when they spoke, simply at the sheet of paper. "So you would be one of the owners of the house, Molly Weasley."

"Mmhm," she agreed.

The wizard finally looked up from the paper. "And was there a certain individual by the name of Harry Potter in attendance?" 

"No," said Bill, almost too quickly, Lupin thought. The wizard turned to look at him.

"But surely he is a family friend? To a Mr…Ronald Weasley?" There was no beating around the bush any longer. Everyone knew their reason for being there of course.

"Yes," Arthur spoke, feebly at first. "They are, but my son is currently very sick in his bed-"

"Spailey." The wizard turned to a hooded man sitted behind him, and nodded his head upwards, and then turned back to Mr. Weasley. "We will check this. Do you know the whereabouts of Mr. Potter, then?"

"No," said Mr. Weasley. "I am not aware of where he is at the moment. Possibly at his home, seeing as it is the summer session for Hogwarts."

"I see," said the wizard as he did before. He surveyed the rest of the red-headed Weasleys and then his gaze landed upon himself and Tonks. He walked a bit closer and then stopped in front of them.

"Now," he began. "Do-"

But he was never allowed to finish. By an invisible force he had been knocked backwards off his feet and fell to the floor, his tiny figure wiggling in its place trying to get back up. Nearly everyone had sprung to their feet except for Tonks whose face had turned pale.

_Thanks to my dear fact checkers!) I have gone back and re-read some parts of the 5__th__ and 6__th__ books and I now feel more confident about how I'm writing the characters, so I hope it shows._


	12. Chapter 12

"Oh," the utterance was without thought as Tonks watched, wide-eyed, as the man wiggled on the floor. After several seconds he struggled to his feet, with his robes tangled around him, and finally stood, starring at her as though she were an object of mystery.

"Sorry," she said, although she didn't really meant it, but it was not her intention for what she was thinking to actually happen. Now she was wondering how it had happened? 

"Your wand?" the wizard held out his hand.

"You have no right to confiscate her wand," Lupin said, still standing, along with most others in the room.

"But if an attack-"

"I didn't attack you with my wand," said Tonks.

"I don't care what you did, but until the end of this questioning I would like to have your wand in my possession!"

"Enough of this!" said the voice of the Death Eater whom had threatened her earlier. _"Expelliarmus!"_

She flew backwards and felt her wand leave the pocket of her robes. Lupin was at her side immediately, pulling her up. She looked up to see the Death Eater picking up her wand and then spinning it between his fingers. "Now," he said, sitting back down. "Shall we continue?"

She felt Lupin's right hand release her arm and make a slight movement towards his pocket. "Don't," she whispered. "We don't have to fight tonight, let's see what information we can get."

His hand relaxed and he helped her to her feet. Those standing, apart from the now shaken little wizard, sat down once again, but a bit more cautiously now. During this momentary pause, Tonks' mind was racing. She knew she'd been thinking it, seeing the wizard fall to the floor in her mind, but…how did it happen?

She was absolutely puzzled. Of course, she had no doubt in herself that she knew her stuff and that she was a great witch, but to completely knock someone off their feet with no wand in hand and only by thought? This was unheard of when it came to her skill.

"Now, as I was saying," the little wizard continued, pulling his robes back into position. "Do either of you two know the whereabouts of Harry Potter?"

"I do not," said Lupin first. "And neither do I," Tonks followed. The questioning thus far had been way too simple and basic for the people who were conducting it. She was sure it was about to take a turn for the worse.

He eyed them for a moment before continuing. "Remus Lupin, correct?" The wizard asked.

Out of the corner of her eye Tonks saw Remus nod at the sound of his name and the wizard continued. "You were the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher for Harry Potter's third at Hogwarts," he said. "And from what I hear, your relationship went beyond that of student and professor and formed into a kind of friendship, would you agree?"

"Harry and I did have discussions together, most of them brief," Lupin said. "The subject usually revolved around his father because I had been his classmate during my own attendance to Hogwarts."

"But surely he asked you other things?" the wizard asked, taking a few steps toward them. "You were the Dark Arts professor. Did you not teach him things of the craft outside the classroom?"

"I helped all of my students if they were struggling with anything in class," Lupin said, his voice was very smooth and confident as he spoke.

"I see," the wizard's eyes lingered on Lupin for several moments before turning to Bill and Fleur, "Well, then!"

The wizard stood at the center of the room for the next few hours, spinning in his spot, questioning each of them randomly and out of turn as though he didn't want them to get used to the pattern of his questioning. During this, he had ordered a few of the half dozen Death Eaters to search the house which did not produce their desired results. They were convinced that Ron was truly ill once they discovered the ghoul, but that was about all they were convinced of. However, despite the constant questioning and repetitiveness and besides the incident that had occurred earlier, everything remained quiet and no one raised a wand the entire time. There was no use of the unforgivable curses or any other charms, simply questions and carefully chosen answers. This was a tactic Tonks did not think would be used by the new rulers of the wizarding world, seeing as they were brutal beings.

After asking Ginny every single detail about the time she'd been with Harry at Hogwarts, during which she handled herself quite well except for some nasty (and well deserved) expressions, the wizard gave a sigh and ended his questioning.

"This will not be the last time that you might be questioned by the Ministry of Magic," he said. "It most certainly is not. But I will end this session now and take the information I have." There was no thank you or graciousness to his ending.

Tonks began to watch the Death Eater that held her wand, as he'd begun to spin it between his fingers again. He stopped and then let it role to the center of his hand before grasping it tightly as he walked over to where she was sitting. Both Lupin and her stood up as he approached. His face was still shrouded in black, and so therefore she could not see his expression, but guessed him to be smirking.

"I don't trust turning my back on you," he said, as he slowly handed her back her wand. She snapped it quickly out of his hand.

Neither Lupin nor Tonks said anything, and they watched the small group of black figures and the one little wizard, gather into the center of the room and then disappear from sight.

_Thanks for all of your support, you guys! It is greatly appreciated._


	13. Chapter 13

"Well that was-" Arthur began.

"Bloody ridiculous!" In unison the twins finished his thought in their own words.

"Have they tried on a new approach to things?" Bill said. "Not once did they use the _Cruciatus_ curse or any other. In fact, the most destruction came from our side of the fence." He nodded his head at Tonks, but gave a reassuring smile to her.

"My only guess is that they don't want to be to alarming," said Arthur. He stood up and walked over to Molly's chair, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Once official word is released that Scrimgeour is dead then there will be no use in them exercising discrepancy."

"Not that the news of his death will be all factual," Lupin said, remaining seated. "The only reason we know the truth is because of Kingsley, and we should be grateful for that. But the wizarding world will know a twisted fate, no doubt, so therefore they would want to keep the Ministry in similar order."

"It's not the fallen Ministry that I am so worried about, honestly," said Bill. "It is that now Death Eaters will have even more of a free reign. I know they had it before, but now there is no barrier." At these last words, Fleur rested her head on Bill's shoulder, allowing her glowing hair to fall and wrap around their holding hands.

Lupin wanted very much to wrap his arms around Tonks, but knew this wasn't the time or place. A new type of fear had been instilled in him. He knew this would come, the great fall, because it slowly had for months now, but it was here and there was no stopping from now until the end.

Tonks stood up beside him and he watched her as she walked over to sit by Ginny, who'd remained quiet following the Death Eaters' leave. She had wrapped an arm around her, and spoken something inaudible to Lupin's ears.

"You saw Harry leave?" Lupin then said to Arthur.

"With Ron," he confirmed. "And Hermione. Several seconds after the message." He noticed that his hand slightly squeezed Molly's shoulder at the sound of their son's name, and she lowered her head at this.

"They'll be alright, I believe," reassured Lupin, to himself and everyone else in the room, because they had to have hope. "I only wish we knew the true cause of this job that was given to them."

"We don't know anything?" asked Charlie, who'd remained quiet up to this point.

"Nothing," said Arthur, who finally sat down in a chair next to his wife.

"Ridiculous," Molly finally spoke. "They could have told us something. It should have been necessary for them to." Her voice cracked a bit. "They are goodness knows where at a time like this and we don't know what they'll be doing from here on out!"

"We could take a guess as to where they might be," said Arthur.

"My best bet would be Grimmauld," said Lupin. "It's not a wise choice, but probably one of few for the three of them. If that is true then we will find out sooner or later," and he removed from his pocket a parchment that Moody had given him before he'd met his end several nights ago. He unfolded it and on the page there was no sign of previous use, other than the folded lines from its stow away in Lupin's robes. "If they, or anyone else, enter number 12 then the parchment will show them doing so."

"Let's keep it out for a while then," said Bill.

"Tonks," Fred turned leaned back in his chair and it gave a squeak. "You going to show us how you did that?"

The attention of the room now diverted to her once again pink head. Lupin watched her as she sat next to Ginny, starring back at all of them, like a child caught of doing something wrong. "I wish I knew myself," she said, as though trying to be humble.

"And you didn't have a wand out?" Arthur asked her. "My dear, I knew you were good, but not that advanced!"

"Neither did I," she said, now looking at the floor, sheepishly kicking around golden specks that cluttered the ground, decorations from the wedding.

"Let's get this placed cleaned up," said Molly, after a few seconds. And all of the remaining seated slowly stood and drew their wands, helping to straighten the leftover mess that surrounded them.

As wands flicked to and from, things in the room began to disappear. Chairs, plates, flowers, all disappeared into thin air as they disposed of them.

"V'well," said Fleur, pausing from her clean up to pick up a fallen flower. "At s'least it was beautiful." Bill kissed her on the forehead. "It was."

Several minutes went on as they continued cleaning, and the room began to look like its previous form. Lupin said nothing to Tonks, nor did he get near enough to touch her. It was not as though he didn't want to, for he surely did. It didn't feel right, while being there, and he wasn't sure why.

There was a blast of sound and George said, "What the bloody hell as that?"

Lupin knew very well what it was, and the following voice only confirmed it. He'd left Moody's unfolded parchment on his chair, and it had now come to life with the sound of Moody's implanted ghost at number twelve Grimmauld place. After its terrifying scream, he heard Harry's voice, and all the other faces in the room turned to the yellowing sheet of paper.

_Please forgive the delay in this update, I can assure you that I just haven't had the time to write a proper chapter, and I didn't want to rush it. My apologies. _


	14. Chapter 14

Arthur conjured a Patronus to send a message to the three that had just arrived at number 12 Grimmauld Place, telling them that all was well and not to try and contact them for fear that their whereabouts would be discovered.

They all found themselves with a new reality around them. Although times had never been easy as of late, they were going to become as difficult as ever. With the Ministry fallen and Harry, Ron, and Hermione partaking in a mysterious task they weren't allowed to know about, they would be fighting blindly.

A bolt of light shot across the room.

"Sorry, sorry!" Tonks was running towards Fred Weasley, as the light barely graced his left arm. "Oh, I promise I didn't mean to do that!"

"Did you break your wand, Tonks?" Molly walked over to them, rubbing at her son's arm. Fred was doing his best to pull away. "I'm fine, thank you!" He finally escaped.

"No," Tonks was now examining the length of her wand, running her fingers across the slightly worn piece of wood. "I'm sure that I haven't."

She was in the midst of taking down the ceiling decorations when it happened. The bolt of light shot out of her wand, without thought or word. She was grateful that it had only been Molly, Ginny, and Fred in the room at the moment, for the others had gone outside to place the needed protection around the Burrow, as well as clean up other signs of the wedding.

Molly was watching Tonks' wand as she turned it over and over again in her hands. "It seems quite fine."

"I think your magic has gone crazy, if you ask me," said Fred, who was supposed to be cleaning along with Ginny, but had decided to arrange the streams of ribbon he'd taken down into a colorful cat that pranced onto Ginny's leg before its threads fell limp on the floor.

"Wonderful job at stating the obvious," Ginny said, kicking the ribbon away.

"Feeling ill, maybe?" Molly placed the back of her hand on Tonk's forehead.

"I don't think so," Tonks said, sitting down to avoid Molly's lingering hand. She hadn't felt sick or anything near it. She felt angry at times, but nothing more. And she had definitely been angry when the little Ministry wizard flipped backwards off his feet, but there was no reason for her to feel angry while cleaning up Bill and Fleur's wedding. She was anxious to get home and talk to Lupin, although about what she was not sure. She currently felt at an odd stage with him and everything else.

There was a swelling anticipation inside her that had been burning for the past few days. She wasn't quite sure of its reason, but felt it had something to do with the oncoming war, or the present war is it is now that time. As an Auror she was angry with herself for these magical outbursts. She'd always known how to control her magic, so why couldn't she do it now?

"Maybe I am just tired," Tonks said, now standing up to help the others. "The work at the Ministry has become pressuring, of course, and now I can't think of what it's going to be like."

Molly walked closer to her with a worried look on her face. Tonks braced herself for what would come next. "Is everything well at home?" she asked, out of earshot of Ginny and Fred, who were now using the ribbon to make animals again.

"Yes," Tonks replied quite confidently, and then she pondered this question again, knowing she couldn't lie to Molly. "Well, everything is alright with me. My parents would be a different story, and you know that one." 

"Give it time," Molly encouraged. "I know that I would react the same way, but they don't quite know Remus the way we do. And Remus, how is he?" 

"Good, I s'ppose," Tonks continued to vanish chairs as they spoke. "He still seems hesitant at times, just the way he had before and always. He thinks about the worst of things too much, and I wish he wouldn't."

There was a dull pain in Tonk's stomach and she winced slightly. Come to think of it, she'd felt that for quite a few days now, but never had she put much thought to it.

"I saw that face," Molly said, noticing her change in expression.

"Actually, maybe I am sick," Tonks said. "My stomach has been giving me odd feelings, although I guess I've been ignoring them."

She walked over a few steps and got rid of the last remaining chair which finished the clean-up, minus the pile of ribbons Ginny and Fred were now tangled in.

"Nymphadora," Molly had never used her first name before. Tonks spun and meant to scold her for it but didn't say a word at the look of amazement on Molly's face. "My magic used to do funny things too, now that I recall. But it was only in the beginning. I got used to it after the third one, and began to expect it…"

"I'm sorry?" Tonks was completely confused as to what Molly was trying to communicate to her.

"Dear," she walked up to her and grabbed both of her hands. "You're pregnant."

"Oh…goodness." Tonks' knees gave out and she fell onto the floor at the realization that this new news had to have been true.


	15. Chapter 15

Lupin bent over his wife and lifted her up to a sitting position, even though she wasn't fully conscience yet.

"Tonks!" Ginny was shaking her shoulders, attempting to rouse her back to life.

Lupin had just returned to the room after he'd finished setting up the protective spells around the Burrow, although there was no reality in them doing any justice now that the Ministry had fallen. He opened the door, and saw Tonks on the floor, with Molly holding her face in her hands, speaking inaudibly to her.

"What happened?" Lupin asked in one quick breath.

"She just c-collapsed," Molly hesitated with her words. Tonks' head rolled on her shoulders and her eyes fluttered open. She looked back and forth, from a face to face.

"Is something wrong?" She said calmly.

"You fell on the floor!" Ginny said.

"Doesn't that happen all the time?" Tonks was now attempting to stand, but Lupin held her down. "You shouldn't get up just yet, sit for a moment."

She rolled her eyes at this suggestion and gave the appearance of being quite irritated with all of them. "Nothing's wrong, I'm fine!" She broke from Lupin's grasp and stood up, everyone's eyes watching her, as Bill, Arthur and the others had entered the room as well.

"Well then," Bill hesitated in the uneasy moment. "The job outside is done."

"Yes, and the Delacours have agreed to stay another night," said Arthur. "We don't need them traveling just after tonight's events. Remus, both of you are welcome to stay, also."

"Thank you, but I'd like to return home and make sure everything is alright there," Tonks didn't allow a moment to linger after this polite gesture of the Weasleys.

"I will let you know when I return from Grimmauld place," Lupin said, and he felt Tonks turn towards him. "I'll let Harry know what we know and ask him yet again if he will let us in on this task of his."

"Yes," said Arthur. "Let us know-"

"If there is anything you need," Molly filled in the rest for her husband, and then grabbed Tonks by the arm. "Please do." She watched her face, and both of the women exchanged glances, making Lupin wonder if they were conversing something secret.

"We will," Tonks said, and she began her walk out of the room, which Lupin followed.

Her pace out of the house was strenuous and Lupin did his best to keep up, but by the time they'd reached outside he had to grab her arm to stop her from apparating without him. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes," it was a loaded yes, and he could tell that she was in deep thought by looking at the sadness in her eyes. "I would just like to get home now."

They grabbed hands, and the world spun around them until they landed on the sidewalk outside Tonks' home. He felt her hand try to release his, but he held on. "Don't enter too quickly," he said, staring at the darkness that surrounded the front of the house. The full moon had long since vanished and all that remained was a sliver in the sky.

Slowly they walked closer to the front door and the world around them was consumed in silence. It was obvious that something had happened here.

As they got closer to the door he saw it slightly ajar and he instinctively stopped. But Tonks sped up, ripping her hand from his. As she ran up the steps Lupin bolted after her. "Dora!" His plea was hushed.

He reached the door at the time she had and threw his arm in front of her, despite her struggle to enter. She pulled at his cloak, trying desperately to get around him, but he pushed her away, entering before she could.

He grabbed her arm as she tried to get past him and held on tightly. "You are hurting me!" she hissed at him. But he wasn't about to let even worse happen to her.

"Lumos," he said quietly, and the tip of his wand came to light, illuminating the dark hallway in front of them. He walked slowly forward, his wand outstretched before him. He still held Tonks by the arm, although she no longer struggled but walked at his side.

"Who is there?" The voice of Ted Tonks came from them end of the hallway.

Lupin could hold onto her no longer as Tonks burst from his grasp and ran to her father as he exited the last room of the hallway. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her father pattered her lightly on the back.

"What happened?" Lupin reached the end of the hallway. As Tonks let go of her father Lupin saw the beads of blood that graced his forehead.

"Death Eaters," he said, his breath tired and worn. "Three of them."

"What did they do?" Tonks had the track of a single tear running down her face.

"We're alright now," he said, reassuringly, but Lupin was not convinced. "But we mustn't wake your mother, she is resting now. They left about an hour ago."

"Did they question you?" Lupin asked, as they walked to the sitting room.

"Of course, but they did more than that," Ted sat down slowly on the couch and Tonks sat next to him, with Lupin sitting in a chair opposite of them. "Cruciatus."

"No!" Tonks looked at her father and then back at the room where her mother was. She made to stand but Ted pulled her down. "Don't worry, dear, she's alright. Shaken up, yes, but now she needs to rest. She only just fell asleep. Believe me, she was terribly worried about you, and refused to rest until you got home. I had to give her a bit of a sleeping spell. She got the worst of it. Bellatrix was one of the death eaters."

"She really had the nerve," Lupin said, shocked as this family brutality, for Bellatrix had been Tonks' mother's sister.

"A lot of it," Ted was shaking his head, the dried blood on his forehead was dark enough to pass as freckles on his skin. "There was questioning, yes, about the night Harry came before going to the Burrow. They challenged us, saying that we were obviously against them, not only for helping Harry Potter, but for putting up defense charms that didn't allow them in.

"She remained silent through all of this, Bellatrix did. In fact, we didn't even know that she was among the three, for the other two were the ones asking all the questions. And then once it seemed like it had come to an end, she pulled out he wand and shot it at her own sister, the Cruciatus Curse. Her hood fell back, and she had the look of delight on her face. I wanted to curse her, but the other death eaters did the same to me."

"She would have killed her," Ted put a hand to his forehead as though to hide his sadness. "But she said 'it wasn't yet that time.' Your mother will die because of me, I know it."

"Don't say that," Tonks' eyes filled with tears. "Please don't. She is a wicked woman, and she disowned this part of her family when she pledged loyalty to you-know-who."

"She was wicked to you, too, my dear," Ted now lifted his hand, and several specks of blood disappeared from his face. "It wasn't her intention to ask questions of us, I can assume that much. She just wanted to torture us with her wand and with her words. She said that our entire family was a disgrace to her tree and to the wizarding world. She-she said," he hesitated, "she said that her niece was a bigger disgrace than her mother, because although she married a mud-blood her daughter married a beast."

Lupin's head dropped, and he hoped that the darkness of the room hid his face from the two of them.

"Of course she would say a thing like that," Tonks said confidently. "And what do we think of her. The mistress to pure evil, is what _I_ think of her, that's for certain. We can't let her have the last laugh, she won't have it."

Lupin listened to this vow and his head began to spin with thought. Just as Ted had said he'd be the reason for his wife's death, a mud-blood marrying a pure blood. He would be the reason for Tonks' death, for she had married a monster. With Bellatrix so determined and with the power of the dark lord behind her, it seemed to be quite a simple task for them to achieve. He squeezed his eyes shut at his thinking of such a horrific event. He had every faith in what the Order was doing to defeat you-know-who, but unlike their reach to destroy Harry, their reach to destroy the Tonks family would be quite easier, and a good blow to the good side of things.

He wondered what Tonks was thinking, and looked up. She had been watching him, and when he caught her eyes he looked away quickly to avoid future contact.

"You should sleep, too," he saw her glare turn to her father, who was sighing deeply.

"Yes, that sounds good," he said. "And I don't know how much of it I will get in the future." He stood up. "I'm glad that you're safe," he put a hands on his daughters face. "And you, too," he nodded at Lupin.

Ted Tonks walked to the door at the end of the hallway and drew it to a close after entering it. Lupin watched the white door fit its frame, and listened to the click its knob made at its closure. He turned his face at Tonks, whom he knew was watching him again.

"I didn't tell them anything about tonight, I thought it'd be better to wait until tomorrow," she said. She was seated in the center of the couch and directly in front of him, which made her piercing stare more direct.

"That is a good idea," he said, his voice quiet.

There was a few moments pause, during which Lupin shuffled his feet on the floor. Tonks never broke her stare. There was a great sigh, similar to her father's, and then she spoke.

"I need to tell you something."


	16. Chapter 16

Lupin watched her eyes as they bore into him, and felt an overwhelming sadness. Her eyebrows pointed in an expression bordering fear, as though whatever words might follow would be the end of all things. She placed her chin in her hands, and with her elbows resting on her knees, her fingers framed her face. A pose that expressed an overwhelming burden that she could no longer carry.

He didn't realize when it had happened but her pale hair for the evening had turned dark and reflected the room around her. The evening was a range of emotions and Lupin couldn't believe that only a few hours ago she was resting her head on his shoulder and they were happy.

"I don't even know what to think anymore," she finally said. Tears were building up again and fell down her face in their old tracks. "After tonight, I-I can't help but think that the future will never be bright."

He didn't get up to comfort her, because he was waiting for her to tell him that she didn't love him anymore and she wanted him to leave. He was almost hoping for it, because it would make things so much easier for her and her family.

He'd spent his youth trying to get people to accept him, and much of his adult life too, but now he didn't see its purpose any longer. It was only hurting others. He'd rather live in sadness than in fear that the ones he loved would face death and humiliation all because of his selfishness.

"Say something for me," she said, looking into his face again. "I need to hear your voice, I need to hear your reasoning."

He looked back at her. Why was she doing this? He shook his head and looked to the floor.

"Lupin," she said, and he couldn't bare to look up at her because he knew that he was crying now. "I'm going to tell you something, and I want you to understand my sadness behind it."

She stood up and walked over to the side of his chair, sitting on the floor in front of him. He wiped away his tears to attempt and hide them from her because he no longer could. She placed a hand on his knee and rested the side of her face against his leg.

"I didn't want this to happen now, but I guess we have no control over it," she said, looking up into his face.

She was being too kind about this. Why didn't she just say it? Why didn't she just tell him that she wanted him gone. This was hurting him more, and he began to question his earlier reasoning. He wanted to run out, and save her the time.

She smiled, "Remus, I'm pregnant."

He was so still that he'd thought his blood had frozen in its place. He began to shake slightly and then grabbed her face in his hands. She burst into tears and pushed herself into his arms, and he found himself tightly holding onto her in a mix of emotions. He felt frustration, he felt guilt, but he yet he felt happiness, selfish happiness.

She was crying deeply now, and taking in deep breaths. She was kneeling in front of him, her hands full of the front of his cloak as she hung onto him. Her face was close to his, and he saw her smiling as small amounts of space was allowed between them.

"Are you-"

"Yes, I'm sure," she knew his words. "I'm sure. But I'm scared, too."

He felt fear, too, and it suddenly consumed him. His selfish happiness was followed by frustration at himself. How could he have let this happen? What if it was like him, a beast.

"I'm scared that he or she will be born into a world of war, and I didn't want that to happen," she said. "I wanted children after the war, not while it still went on. I wanted to fight! I want to fight!"

He didn't say anything, because it wouldn't have mattered. She knew she couldn't fight during this, that she had a new responsibility. But why had she not voiced what he knew she was thinking.

"Dora," his voice was heavy as it left him. "It will be like me."

She put a hand over his lips, and hushed him the way she always did. "Whether the answer to that is yes or no it doesn't matter," she said. "We'll love our child regardless. And whether he or she is born with purple hair or your shabbiness we will still love them." She smiled and then laughed. 'But, oh, I just hope they are more poised like their father!"

He wanted to stay in this moment forever, before any other decision of pain could be made again. It all hurt too much because he knew he couldn't hold onto it.

"I wonder if I am ready for this," she said, still holding onto fistfuls of his cloak. "I will be forced to grow up now." She pushed her fingers into his hair. "I know that you will be wonderful, you were meant to be a father."

"What makes you think this?" He asked her.

She put a finger to his temple. "Because I know this."

They continued to hold onto each other, and Lupin didn't relinquish his hold until Tonks admitted her tiredness and asked that they both retire for the evening. He agreed, but asked her to go ahead of him while he put a protective charm around the house, knowing it had been broken earlier that evening. When he kissed her goodnight he did so passionately and deeply, unlike he had ever kissed her before. She smiled, a tired smile, but it was bright like it had been earlier that evening.

As Lupin walked outside the house he immediately looked for the moon. It hung directly ahead of him, the sliver of light it had been earlier that evening. He stood at the doors frame watching its stillness in the night sky. He thought of the time and knew it would be only a few hours until the sun rose. But the moon would still be there for him, it was always there.

He walked around the house announcing the respective charms, choosing them more fiercely then before because he knew there was more to protect.

As he returned to the house and walked to their room, he stood in the doorway. Tonks was curled into a ball at the top of the bed, fast asleep as though she were a child herself. Slowly, Lupin carried his feet into the room, and pulled the door to a gentle close behind him. When he felt it hit the wood of its frame he let go, but then he felt it pull slightly away. He turned and saw the door slightly ajar. He grabbed the knob again and pulled it, realizing then that it no longer fit the threshold as it had earlier. Grabbing his wand, he gave it a tap and it finally came to a close.

There was a chair in the corner of the room and he took it by the top, carrying it over to the side of the bed. He placed it down so that he could sit there and watch her sleep, for he had no intention of doing of himself that evening. He'd told Arthur that he would visit Grimmauld Place and make sure of Harry, Hermione, and Ron's safety, and at dawn he would leave to do so. After that, however, he did not know.


	17. Chapter 17

_I apologize for the delay but I haven't had internet over the past few days._

The rain was heavy and relentless against the window as dawn approached with a grimly beginning to a day that would prove to difficult. Tonks stirred and then woke, as the drops irritatingly impacted what were dreams of happiness and sweet loving care. These dreams were something she'd meant to prolong, for she knew that, for the time being, happiness would be rare.

However, optimism has its way in some hearts, and it beat brightly within her as she mused over these trivial times while the letting the blanket role off her, wondering if Remus meant to substitute his warmth with the sheet. Looking from side to side, Tonks could see that he was no where to be seen, and knew she had not woken to see him leave as she'd wanted to. It was her intention to tell him to wake her before he left, but she'd fallen asleep before he came to the room.

She smoothed a hand over the spot next to her and noticed it to be curiously void of any unevenness from a sleeping body over the night. She looked around the room and saw the chair positioned at the wall to her left, a place it had never been before.

"Remus," she said, with a deep sigh, saying his name aloud for no one but herself to hear. He was always pondering and now she'd given him something that was probably spinning in his head as the moments ticked on.

She knew he was hesitant to have children, although he had not voiced it to her. She could only presume such after all the other hesitative movements he'd made towards this new bond of theirs.

Thinking back, Tonks almost laughed at herself in shame at the way she used to act. She couldn't say that she fell in love with him at first glance, but he had a way about him that she agreed upon, the way she did with most people. It was like having a bookcase in which she arranged the books according to genre of character, because that is what she thought of when she would meet people. She would think about their character, and how much laughter she could see in some while in others she saw quirkiness. It was those individualistic qualities she sought after, because being around repetitive people is quite boring to her.

Remus was the voice of reason to her form the start, and the scars on his face and trouble in his eyes were and still are picturesque to her. The more she listened to him, the more her appreciation of him grew. She found that everyone had a certain appreciation for him, even though some disagreed with his thoughts; they always appreciated him and his skill as a wizard. She did too, only, it seemed that this growing did not stop, and she soon began to question why. It was when she met Harry and saw the way Remus and him interacted that she began to wonder if her thoughts about him were going overboard. He protected Harry to an extent she respected greatly.

And when there were moments of laughter and chatter among others at a dinner table or in a room where the conversation did not center on times of decision and action she watched him listening to all the others. He would listen and remain silent, laughing only slightly when appropriate, and smiling many times, but most times there was a saddened expression on his face. She grew to love this look, and then she grew to love this man. But she didn't know why, and continued to question herself.

Then she abandoned all thought and reason over the past year. She forgot to question her love and instead trusted it. She felt like a fool when she'd told him, because the outcome was not what she expected. She thought that he'd felt a different type of care for her, because of the way she'd catch him staring or the way he listened to her specifically at times or the way he'd chuckle at her falls and help her up by his hand. And when she told him that she cared for him in a greater way than friendship he was startled, and then asked for her to never speak of such thoughts to anyone. He then ignored her and avoided her at all costs. She'd never been so overwhelmed by sadness in her whole life at this response, and it was with this sadness that she truly learned that she loved him. This made her heart ache even more, because he did not return or ever lead her to believe that he had the same love for her.

In February of last year members of the Order had gathered at the burrow to re-discuss positions and watch posts as times had slightly shifted and they wanted to be fully aware of everyone's thoughts and ideas. She couldn't keep her eyes off him, and became almost angered when he avoided her gaze, because not once did he look at her or acknowledge her. This was not the Remus she'd fallen in love with. Why was he doing this?

She watched him as he sat by the fire for the evening as members shuffled away and eventually left. She stayed in her corner, hidden in shadow because she knew he did not know of her presence. When it was only them two remaining she approached him.

"If it can't be the way I'd hoped it to be," she said, and he spun around, startled by her sudden voice. "Then can you make it the way it was before. Look at me, smile at me, talk to me, please!"

She remembered how desperate she sounded and the way the tears came running down her face.

"Dora," he said, his brow furrowing in sadness. She herself was startled at this address because he'd never used it before, and the only one who'd nicknamed her this was her father. It made her sad to hear it, because she wanted the warmth and care behind it that she knew he wouldn't let her have.

His mouth lingered open for several seconds, as though he was trying to say something. She drew closer to him, hoping to pull it out of his mind, and hoping that it was something she wanted to hear. She got so close to him that they were almost touching as she stopped. Her breath was stuck in her throat as she dared not to breathe at the thought of missing these words.

He lifted a hand to her face and ran it through her hair which had taken on a brown, musty color lately. He let his hand rest in her short locks, and she knew her hair was growing pinker as did her cheeks.

Letting go quickly, he said, "I can't."

"Why!" She almost yelled it in his face, and did not care if she disturbed someone. Their faces were close as her breath became violent in anger at his thoughtless attempt to conceal his feelings, which she knew were there.

"You think too much of something that isn't there," he said. His eyes were bright as the fire danced, and shadows creased his face that gave an appearance of secrecy.

"I think that you are a liar," she said, as he began to back away. She took steps closer, unwilling to let him escape from her. "Be honest, Remus. Just be honest. I can take honestly better than this…this stalling."

"I will hurt you!" he said, bending over her to let their faces become leveled with each others. "I won't…" His words trailed as his thoughts progressed, and she could see his mind pacing behind the still furrowed brow.

"You won't hurt me," she said, and it took all the bravery in the world to grasp the sides of his face in her hands and kiss him. She did so with great force, as though this were her only chance to ever feel his lips against hers. And this thought brought the tear fall once more, and she felt them on her fingers and his face. They fell even more as he pulled away from her. She let go because she knew she had to. After all, she had to respect this man whom she held in such high regard.

"This is not appropriate," he said. "You need someone young, vibrant, and someone who can give you a comfortable life. I'm poor….I'm older, and I'm a marked man with a name that would haunt us forever."

She took a seat on a tattered armchair and buried her face in her hands as he said this to her. He lingered on the spot for a few moments, and then walked away, stopping at the door before he left. "You shouldn't think of this anymore, it makes no sense…no sense at all."

In her mind she cursed him and every bit of respect she held for his being because she hated him. She thought that happiness would never see the light of day and sadness had overtaken the world. She felt foolishness and stupidity for being a little girl in love and vowed never to love again.

The following weeks her hair turned a dark shade of brown and grew long enough that she tied it in the back giving her a professional look that fitted her new commitment to rid herself of childishness. She did things more slowly, and with much more caution, so much that days went by where she didn't trip or break anything. There were people who argued against the newer version of herself.

"I don't know if you're trying out some new character, but it has to stop," Mad-Eye said one day while she was in his office. "I'm starting to feel like I'm hanging around a muggle."

"Muggle!" Tonks repulsed.

"Yes, you heard me," he growled at her, his magical eye fixated on her grimace. "Now smile, laugh, do something pleasing. For goodness sake, break the tea cup in your hand! I know it'd bring me joy."

"There is nothing wrong with becoming serious about things," she said in her defense. "There is a war."

"No, there is nothing wrong with being serious," he said. "But when you start doing it, it is wrong!"

"Mad-Eye!"

"Just let it go, Nymphadora," he said in a whisper, and in a fatherly tone she was shocked to hear, so much that she didn't correct this use of her name.

She then growled in anger and stormed out of his office in furry over this judgment of her. Having not watched her step for the first time in a long time, she stepped on a stair she didn't know to be there, and fell forward, bracing herself for a dozen more steps. But they never came, and she fell no longer, because someone had seized her in their arms, preventing her tumble.

She stood to her feet and turned, the man still held onto her as though she had broken and he must hold her together. And then Remus' suddenly let go as she turned to see his face. He was a mess if she ever saw one. The left side of his face was badly bruised and full of dried blood. His hair was longer and shaggier than ever. But despite this appearance, his eyes were sparkling with a hint of happiness, which sent daggers through her heart, knowing that this horrible man could ever be happy.

Quickly she pulled away from him, and gave a menacing stare before turning her focus to the steps in front of her. One by one she took them, and with every hard planted step she crushed a piece of his heart.

That night, her threads unraveled and she sat in her room on her bed as a sliver of moon shown through her curtains. Her hair was the same brown it had been, and it hung around her face as tears continued to fall. She cried herself to sleep and did so many nights after.

And on one single day, many things happened and she had no idea how to grasp them all at once. The night of Dumbledore's death was a hard blow to her as it was with everyone, especially because they hadn't done more to prevent it and did not expect that it would ever come. She watched Fleur as she hovered above the scars on the face of her future husband, knowing that he would be a different man. She saw how they accepted each others love, and she felt like a bratty child who didn't get what she wanted. And on a night when she should have been mourning another's life, she made a selfish decision, and professed her love for Remus once more, in the open, where he had to speak honestly in front of everyone.

She didn't receive an answer at that moment, but a reassurance of hope. And once things settled, and the two of them left the room together, he turned to her, but she wouldn't let him speak first.

"If you're going to tell lies again save it, because I can't stand this much heart ache in one night," she said, her face firm and set.

"I love you," he told her.

They both stood there, looking into each others eyes as though the world was not spinning around them. She wanted to collapse into his arms but she maintained her composure, something she'd learned in the past few weeks from patience and discipline.

Eventually he took her hands and kissed them. Then he said one more thing before the nights end of events, "We don't like to put the ones we love through pain."

They shared a kiss in the halls of Hogwarts as the moon glanced around the corner of the window and its half-shaped form illuminated their faces.


	18. Chapter 18

After sitting on the bed for several minutes Tonks finally stood to her feet to greet the day. She stood on the spot, stretching her arms to the ceiling, and then she ruffled her hair. She remembered how one time Remus had woken her up grabbing one of her pink locks, and then laughing as she stirred and swat him away. There were times when he seemed amused and she decided to hold onto those times, hoping they would become more frequent.

She smiled to herself, and suppressed a giggle. A little girl in love, she still was, but she no longer saw this as a bad thing.

Changing quickly out of her clothes, she entered the hallway and listened for any sound from her parents. A small clinking in the kitchen told her someone was already awake, and she tiptoed quickly down the hall to discover the identity. Her mothers black hair gave her away.

"You should still be sleeping," said Tonks, in a hushed tone.

"Your father's snoring could only keep that charm on me for so long," she said, as a jar flew back up into the above cabinet.

Her mother was fixing tea, and Tonks couldn't help but notice how the dishes she moved magically across the room shook as did the hand holding her wand. Immediately, Tonks grabbed for her wand and took the dishes into her control, using her other hand to suppress her mother.

The dishes settled and she turned, "You could have asked me to do it," Tonks said to her mother, as though the positions of mother and daughter had switched. "Dad told me what happened. You shouldn't even be standing right now."

"Nymphadora, please," her mother ticked her tongue. "How are we supposed to be defiant if we stand down at the smallest of suppressions? I am quite fine, still a bit shaken, but going about my daily business will put me back into order – and that includes making my own tea!" She grabbed the cup away from Tonks. "Thank you for your help, but please sit before you break something."

Tonks rolled her eyes and then she leaned back casually on the counter, her arms folded in dissatisfaction.

"How was the wedding?" Her mother asked, as she added sugar to her up.

"Beautiful," she said, and then she went into a short description of the event but rushed to the news that had developed last night as well. Her mother put up a hand and hushed her.

"Don't worry, we knew," she told Tonks as they took a seat in the sitting room with the tray of tea. "That was one of the things my sister was proud to tell me last night. Anything to make her cause sound a success."

"I can't believe she treated you that way," Tonks shook her head in disgust.

"It was bound to happen," her mother sipped her tea and an odd silence fell over them. It was the type of silence that fell over mother and daughter over time, the type that appeared in their lives when the daughter grew up and no longer needed to tell her mother everything about her life. So therefore the mother sits and contemplates her daughter from a distance.

"I wish you could have had such a beautiful wedding, too," her mother sat sipping her tea, fixated at a spot on the wall as though it were showing a moving picture. The hint in her voice was hard to miss.

"I loved my wedding," Tonks said. She didn't say it forcibly or with anger, but with certainty and what she hoped came off as a mature statement.

"Of course you did," her mother said, taking another sip.

Tonks wanted to stand and walk out of the room to escape this silent beating, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.

"It's never been much of a family name, but I really like the thought of a daughter named Alexandria," said Tonks.

She felt her mother's focus slowly move from the wall to her daughter seated in front of her.

"I'm sorry?"

"What do you think?" she asked her mother. "Although, I do agree with the idea of passing on names. I'll have to think of my favorite relative and whether or not they deserve the honor...and whether or not I actually _like_ their name."

"What are you saying," hr mother's tea cup was still in her hand.

"I'm going to have a ba-"

"Nymphadora, you cannot!" Of course, her mother assumed the words before she finished them. "What were you thinking!?"

"Why, what on earth do you mean by that?" Tonks sat patiently on her chair, fully composed.

"Why would you do this to yourself?" Her mother was now bordering tears, and seemed as though she were about to burst with emotion.

"Do what?" Tonks now wondered if she should have delivered this news with her approach, but the spitefulness of her mother asked for it.

"You're setting yourself up for disappointment," her mother said, now standing to her feet, with the tea cup in her hand. "He doesn't love you."

Tonks stood to meet her mother's eyes. "How could you say that?" Tears began to form at such a piercing statement.

"Because it's true, and you know it."

"It is not true," Tonks said. "And it hurts to hear my own mother wish me such a downfall."

"I told you before your wedding that I disagreed," she said. "But you wouldn't listen to me."

"And I won't," replied Tonks. "Because you aren't opening your eyes!"

"Your baby will be like h-"

"So what!" Tonks said. "And don't even tell me I'm not mature enough! People deal with children every day that have a certain type of care needed because they have a condition or-or whatever else. I am not scared of what may come!"

"But you are spreading something that should not be spread!" Her mothers tone was dominating.

"I'm going to work," Tonks began to walk out of the room, but she turned back to her mother, who stood their in anger and disappointment. "You need to rest, or you'll end up in St. Mungo's after what happened last night." Tonks shut the door and walked to the front, not glancing back as she left the house for the Burrow.


	19. Chapter 19

Lupin was seated at a pub in Knocturn Alley, with his hood shadowing his face as it hung over a full cup of ale. The two death eaters to his right talked openly with each other, now that the world seemed to rest in their fingers.

He was not sure of either of their names, although one of them sounded quite familiar, but he could have been anyone. It reassured the fear that Voldermort's following had been growing far more than they'd wanted.

"He knows I'm followin' 'im, thas' for sure," said one.

The death eater was right about that. Lupin was being tailed by this particular death eater for the past two days. It was not his intention to go straight from Tonks' home straight to Grimmauld Place, and good thing, for the second Lupin stepped foot outside the door he saw the shadow of the death eater as he hid behind another home. Lupin went from place to place, always doing his best to appear as though he were doing other business, anything to dissuade the death eater, but it was no use.

So, Lupin decided to try another approach to the situation. It took some time, but he eventually turned the tables and began to follow the death eater, whom eventually got confused as to how he'd lost his scent on this track. No doubt, Lupin didn't have the brightest of them on his trail.

"That doesn't mean he won't go where it is expected he will go," said the more intellectual of the two. "To the hunted one. Where is he now?"

"Sleepin' at the place a'ross the street," said the one who'd been following Lupin. "No worries, 'e won't be wakin' anytime soon. I put a spell on 'im!" And the man laughed at what he thought to be his own brilliance.

However, the spell the death eater had cast was weak and ill-shot, easy to get past by Lupin who'd been holding a defensive charm on the other side of the door.

'Let's hope so," said the intellectual one. "He's the best lead we've got, especially after those other two brutes lost track of the boy himself. Impossible." This statement caused Lupin's heartbeat to skip.

"No worries," said the man, slurping up his drink. "I go' this one in the bag."

"I think it would be best if I stick with you from now on regardless."

Lupin took a sip of the ale that had been served to him and found it to be a bitter, stale taste. There was a woman coming between tables, wagging a mop back and forth on the floor, doing more damage than good. She came behind Lupin and the edge her mop caught his hood as she moved it to one side, and then as she viscously moved it to the other side he felt it leave him.

Frozen for a moment, Lupin made no sudden movement to pull it back over his head, but sat there gently, so that he brought no sudden attention to himself. Then he reached back and pulled the edge over the top of his head and then pulled it as much over his face as possible.

From underneath the cloth he watched the two death eaters, but they seemed not to notice that the very man whom they'd been speaking about was sitting only feet away.

"Oi, another one, eh!" The one death eater shouted at the ragged lady attending the bar. She shot him a nasty look before bringing him over another glass, which she plopped hazardously in front of him.

"Wotch it!" The death eater said, as a bit of the liquid hit his face.

There was a bit of a pang in Lupin's heart at this phrase, which he knew all too well. He ran his fingers over his brow and decided that this would be the moment to act.

He stood up from his chair and left a galleon on the table and he began to walk away. He moved slowly, passing the two death eaters with his face turned away.

"We should go soon," said the intellectual one. "There's no telling how well your charm worked."

"Don't make fun 'o me magic!"

Lupin quickened his pace and walked quickly out of the pub, then turned a corner and strode off down the street until he reached its end, where he took another turn.

_I apologize for the delay, but I am still without internet. I know this is a short chapter but that is because I didn't like any of my transitions into the next scene. Next chapter will be posted tomorrow. _


End file.
